Getting started with Scai on Google Cloud Platform (GCP) Marketplace

We are trying to make Scai platform easy to get started with. If at any point, you are having trouble, please feel free to reach out to us at info@scaidata.com. We are here to help you.

Scai integrates seamlessly with GCP Marketplace. It allows you to spin up a Scai instance and start analyzing and exploring your data without worrying about installation details. In a few minutes you will have the ScaiPlatform up and running and you can connect to your Cloud SQL database or any other supported data source.

Finding Scai on GCP

You can easily find the ScaiPlatform on GCP by using a browser and navigating here. Alternatively, you can go to GCP marketplace and search for ScaiPlatform.

Deploying the ScaiPlatform on GCP

To get started with Scai, follow these steps:

  • click on Launch on Compute Engine
  • agree to the terms and conditions
  • select the zone you would like the ScaiPlatform to be deployed on
    • choose a zone that is close to your data sources for optimal performance
  • in most cases, you can leave the rest of the parameters unchanged
    • however, if desired, you can change the size of the boot disk (the OS disk that also contains the ScaiPlatform binaries) or of the metadata disk (which will store, among other things, user configuration, roles, dashboard metadata, etc.)
    • you can also restrict the HTTP and HTTPS access to the ScaiPlatform to only a range of IP addresses, by clicking the More button on the bottom of the page
  • once done, click on Deploy
  • on the new page you will see all the details of your ScaiPlatform deployment
  • once the deployment is completed, you will see all the details of your ScaiPlatform deployment
    • Site address and Admin URL both contain the URL where you can access the ScaiPlatform.
    • Admin user is the default user name that was created for your ScaiPlatform deployment
    • Admin password is a temporary (generated) password that you will use to log in for the first time into the ScaiPlatform
    • Instance contains a link to the GCP VM Instance that was created and contains the ScaiPlatform installation. You can SSH into this platform for more advanced configurations or to view the ScaiPlatform log files.
    • Instance zone and Instance machine type contain more information about the zone the instance was deployed and the type of the machine
    • Suggested next steps contain a list of actions that you are recommended to take after you log into the ScaiPlatform
    • Documentation contains a comprehensive list of documentation resources

The ScaiPlatform persistent metadata disk should not be deleted on termination because this contains all your configuration (users, roles, dashboards created, etc.). We recommend you regularly backup and take snapshots of this data disk.

Accessing the Scai interface

  • click on the Log into the admin panel button. This will redirect you to the ScaiPlatform interface. Introduce the default user name (admin) and the Admin password
  • You are now logged into the ScaiPlatform and you can start using it! We recommend you to immediately change the temporary password by going to Settings -> Change password.
  • Take a look at the Suggested next steps, connect the ScaiPlatform to your Cloud SQL database or follow the regular Getting Started guide

Accessing the Scai interface through a secure connection

The SSL certificate used for https connections is self signed. Therefore, you need to add an exception into your browser to bypass any warnings or use other services/certificates to secure your connection to Scai.

To access the Scai interface through a secure connection, click on the Log into the admin panel button and change the protocol from http to https in the address bar, e.g. https://.

Updating Scai to a new version

To update to a new version:

  • first stop your existing Scai VM instance (let's assume that its name is scai-platform-2-1-vm) and detach the persistent metadata disk (scai-platform-2-1-vm-persistent-metadata). We recommend you to create snapshot of this disk before migrating to a new version.
  • deploy the new ScaiPlatform version, following the same steps described above.
  • you now have a running ScaiPlatform VM instance (with the new version and let's assume this is called scai-platform-2-2-vm) and an old one (scai-platform-2-1-vm, that is stopped). Go ahead and stop the new VM instance (scai-platform-2-2-vm) too.
  • edit the new VM instance (scai-platform-2-2-vm) and go to the Additional disks section. Delete the new disk (scai-platform-2-2-vm-persistent-metadata) attached.
    • click on Add item and add the old (scai-platform-2-1-vm-persistent-metadata) disk.
  • you can now start the new VM instance (scai-platform-2-2-vm). Verify that all your metadata is still there.

  • after successfully migrating to the new version and verifying that everything is in place, you can delete the old VM instance (scai-platform-2-1-vm).

    At all times, make sure that the scai-platform-2-1-vm-persistent-disk is not deleted and that you do regular backups/snapshots of it

Managing the Scai instance

Check out the cloud setup for more information on how to manage the deployed Scai instance.